CityBase Acquires Department of Better Technology, Expands Digital Service Capabilities

CityBase, a technology provider that makes governments and utilities more accessible to people and businesses, announced today that it has acquired Department of Better Technology, an Oakland-based technology company that helps government streamline the decisions behind their online forms. Department of Better Technology customers include City of Philadelphia, City and County of San Francisco and the City of Oakland.

IT spending across state and local government is projected to be $101.3 billion in 2017, and the opportunity to add value in this space is significant. Technologies that CityBase and Department of Better Technology provide help centralize and digitize government service delivery from end to end, improving the user experience of both constituents and agency staff. Both companies are helping bridge the technology gap between the public and private sectors.

With this acquisition, CityBase will incorporate Department of Better Technology’s tools into its own suite of services, enhancing the company’s ability to make state and local governments more accessible and responsive to their constituents.

Department of Better Technology’s flagship product Screendoor helps agencies manage paperless forms, intake and evaluation, approval workflows and management and process automation. Looking at Screendoor, CityBase saw a product that embodied significant thought and value, and a team of people with a common vision for the future of government. Both companies recognized that their alignment would significantly enhance the value they delivered to their clients.

“We’re on a mission from gahd to transform the experience of government from end to end. For people, for businesses, and for the government administrators themselves,” said Mike Duffy, CEO of CityBase. “DOBT is creating elegant solutions for government's most painful challenges. We’re excited to welcome these thought leaders onto our team.”

“We founded Department of Better Technology because we believe choosing a life of public service is a beautiful thing, and the people who choose this life deserve great software.” said Josh Goldstein, co-founder and CEO of Department of Better Technology. “Since the beginning of our conversation with CityBase, we realized how closely both our missions and products aligned. It’s a perfect fit.”

Goldstein, who is a co-founder along with Adam Becker and Clay Johnson, previously worked on government technology projects for the World Bank Group and Google. The company was founded in 2013.

The Department of Better Technology team will continue to work out of its Oakland headquarters, and Department of Better Technology co-founder and CEO Josh Goldstein will become CityBase’s Vice President of Product.

About CityBase

CityBase gives people and businesses an intuitive way to interact online and in person with government agencies and utilities. CityBase’s technology dramatically improves constituent services through payment solutions, digital services and API development for cities, states and utilities. For more information please visit http://www.thecitybase.com/. Mike Duffy is the founder and CEO. He has a background in entrepreneurship and finance, including time at Northern Trust managing assets in short term interest rate markets.

About Department of Better Technology

The Department of Better Technology helps governments deliver great software to the people they serve. Screendoor, its flagship product, let teams streamline the decisions behind their online forms. Its customers include cities, states and federal agencies. For more information, please visit: https://www.dobt.co/.